Layla and Majnun is an “opera” based on a Persian poem about lovers who will never be allowed to unite. Alim Qasinov and Fargana Qasimova, singers from Azerbaijan, will be showcasing their majestic voices accompanied by the Silk Road Ensemble and Mark Morris Dance Group as they tell this emotional story.
Just looking at the photos and sneak-peek videos make me happy. There are so many colors, emotions, movements, and art.
Photo by Susana Miller
Layla and Majnun, to me, seems like the epitome of performing arts: a skillful combination of poetry, dances, fashion design, visual art, and of course, music — both improvised and composed. And that’s what excites me about it. Collaboration among different art forms is something that I’m striving to achieve in my final year of undergraduate degrees, and I can’t think of a better example than Layla and Majnun.
The show will be on Thursday October 13 at 7:30pm, and Friday & Saturday October 14 & 15 at 8pm. Tickets are running out, so get yours ASAP from the Michigan League Ticket Office or ums.org/students.
One of the many wonderful things about new technology is that it can lead to entirely new genres of art. Performance animation is one of those genres.
First, we were introduced to two blank screens. Then, a flash of light and color as animated landscapes splashed across the screens. A silhouette stepped into view, and we watched it interact with the buildings and plants and animals that appeared. At times the message was a clear narrative, while at others it was more of a series of dreams transposed on top of one another. If that makes the show sound trippy in any way, then good, because it absolutely was trippy.
Miwa Matreyek is a multi-talented artist currently on tour performing the two pieces that formed this week’s Penny Stamps event. “This World Made Itself” seemed to be more of a love story, although love was by no means the only theme. The juxtaposition of her gigantic form with a city skyline, and her interaction with a tiny animated figure, had strong allusions to King Kong.
Her second piece, “Myth + Infrastructure,” dealt with the biggest themes possible: the birth and death of the world, modernization, death, life, and the interaction of mankind with the natural world.
Time and again we watched Miwa swirl through bodies of water, capture and free flying insects, blend in and become one with the Earth.
Several times it was like a magic show. The audience and I reacted with awe when Miwa sprouted wings out of thin air and her arm melted away into a swarm of white petals. “How did she do that?!” the people next to me exclaimed as they recorded the performance for their Snapchat stories. I wondered the same thing as I too recorded a clip for my story.
Shows like this are rare opportunities, and I strongly encourage you to see the show in Ypsilanti on Friday, October 7 if you can.
You can get a small taste of the performance in this TED video here.
What: The Penny Stamps Speaker Series Presents Miwa Matreyek’s Dreaming With Your Shadow, a piece that blends animation with a live stage performance. If the image above doesn’t convince you, I don’t know what will.
When: October 6th at 5:10 PM
Where: Michigan Theater
Price: FREE. This is one of the many wonderful opportunities you can and should take advantage of at U of M!
This past week, in collaboration with U of M, the American Ballet Theatre brought their hundred and twenty-fifth anniversary production of Sleeping Beauty to Detroit. Featuring the original choreography by the legendary Marius Petipa and a solo by the one and only Misty Copeland, Sleeping Beauty was beautiful, exquisite, and energetic. From the intricate and absolutely decadent costumes, to the beautiful, sweeping music and majestically towering sets, Sleeping Beauty transported me to another world—one in which a two and a half hour-long ballet can feel as sweet and fleeting as a daydream.
The feeling in the Detroit Opera House was electric, enchanted. I’m normally not a huge fan of the ballet; I grew up a musical theatre geek, so I’ve never been able to wrap my mind around how people could find a show without words interesting. Saturday night, though, I finally understood.
I also was incredibly struck by the fact that this production featured the original choreography by Marius Petipa. Here were movements originally executed in St. Petersburg in the 1800s, now on a stage in Detroit in 2016, unfolding before my eyes. I felt both small and like a thread woven into a much larger tapestry. I felt connected to history, to the humans who lived in that other place in that other time. And that kind of connection is magic. It is an honor to be a part of it.
Everyone knows the story of Sleeping Beauty, so I was less intrigued by the storyline as much as the dancing itself. The ballerinas and ballerinos leaped and twirled across the stage—executing perfect entrechat after perfect entrechat—like this was what they were born to do. They made it seem effortless; even their faces were part of the dance, expressions reflecting whatever emotion they wanted to convey at any moment, rather than showing the immense concentration and effort it must take to dance in such a manner.
All of the dancers were wonderful, and it’s clear why they’re part of one of the best companies in the world. The ballerina playing Aurora (Hee Seo) practically defied gravity—and, of course, Misty Copeland was spectacular as well. After waiting through the first two acts to see her, the crowd broke into applause and cheers when she appeared onstage, finally, in the third act. Everything about her was singularly focused and in the moment, precise and delicate and full of emotion. It was breathtaking to witness.
Altogether, American Ballet Theatre’s Sleeping Beauty showed me how much dance connects us and how gorgeous stories can be—even (and especially) the ones we think we already know. The ballet about sleeping made me feel somehow like I was both in a luscious dream and beautifully wide awake.
Michigan Sahana music, a coed team, began the show. They featured singers and musicians of various sorts playing calm music. There were different kinds of drums, a violin, a keyboard, and more.
Michigan Taal was next, performing their routine flawlessly. I’ve seen them dance a couple times now, as I have a friend on that team, but they had a different, amazing energy with them last night.
TAAL
Michigan Raas team went next. Their routine was based on Avatar: the Last Airbender. They are a coed team. There was an Aang character, too!
Maya was the next team onstage. They are all girls, and only had 5 people onstage at a time. Their dance involved lots of hand movement. They were calm, but not boring; it was very different from the other teams.
Michigan Manzil, a coed team, did a routine based on The Wolf of Wall Street. It was a love story about two college kids who graduate. The guy lands a prestigious job in New York and gets really involved in work and starts to change as work takes over his life. Their relationship crumbles. He begs her to stay so that they can start over and things begin to turn around. There was a crazy energy from this team! Two bhangra dancers came out and danced with them for a little bit, as well.
Maize Mirchi, a coed a Capella group sang for a few songs, then Michigan Bhangra team danced. They are coed and were joined by 3 people from Manzil and Sahana near the end.
Michigan Izzat was after Mirchi. Their performance was about a police officer in Chicago. His brother is worried about his safety so he lies to him about being a police officer. It turns out that the brother was part of a gang running from the police. This team was all male. Some guys wore bunny ears and they threw in some ballet routines.
IZZAT
Michigan Sahana, an all female team, danced next. They featured several classical styles. Their outfits had a lot of bangles and accessories that made noise as they danced. Namely, they wore jewelry on their ankles, so whenever they moved or stopped they added to the music.
Overall, That Brown Show was amazing! It certainly didn’t disappoint. I look forward to it next year and encourage you to check it out!
Michigan Manzil, Maize Mirchi, Maya, Michigan Bhangra Team, Michigan Raas Team, Michigan Taal, Michigan Izzat, Michigan Sahānā, and many other groups are featured in tomorrow night’s sixth annual That Brown Show! All of Michigan’s South Asian groups will perform. There will be over 100 performances showcasing different types of music and dance.
The show is tomorrow at 7:30pm, located in the Michigan Theater. Doors open at 7:00!
Tickets can be purchased here and are also available through Passport for the Arts. For more information, the TBS website is located at this link.
